The Yale Bookstore Opens Today for Previews

The Yale Bookstore at 77 Broadway opens its doors to customers at noon today, inaugurating special preview days for the holidays. The opening of the book, cafe and clothing sections of the store, operated by Barnes & Noble College Bookstores, is the first step in bringing one of the country’s premier academic bookstores to the Broadway shopping area. It is one of the largest new retail operations in downtown New Haven in more than a decade. The new space was designed and developed with input from faculty, students and administrators at Yale.

The Yale Bookstore will feature the following:

– an expansive scholarly and general book selection. Tailored to the Yale and New Haven communities, this department will continue to grow;

– a cafe, available for small student and faculty group meetings as well as use by the general public;

– extended hours of operation: 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 9 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday; noon-6 p.m. Sundays;

– sections devoted to Yale faculty authors and university press books;

– a children’s department that will host special events for young book-lovers;

– a “Yale Shop” featuring exclusive designs on clothing, as well as boutique shops of Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein and Speedo Sportswear;

– continued operation of a foreign book department by Europa.

As landlord of the Broadway property owned by Yale, Vice President and Secretary Linda Koch Lorimer said, “Barnes & Noble has done a terrific job of creating an outstanding facility. From an expanded faculty author section to special decorations in the children’s book area, from incorporating Yale memorabilia in the design to creating meeting space for students and faculty, Barnes & Noble has bent over backwards to respond to our requests. The responsibility now falls to Yale faculty, students and the public to help give Barnes & Noble ideas for what additional book titles and merchandise should be added to the store.”

Gary Spearow, general manager of The Yale Bookstore, commented, “We look forward to opening our doors and serving the Yale and New Haven communities. When we open, we will already have a significant retail and academic book presence, but we intend to work with the communities to ensure that this bookstore truly reflects the needs of this area.”

The book and clothing sections of the store will open to the public on Nov. 21. Next month, the “east” section of the building will open, featuring a Marketplace with food and sundries, a Museum Shop with gift items from Yale museums and other museums around the country, and Jamba Juice, the first East Coast location of a popular California enterprise.

For further information, contact Gary Spearow at (203) 7778440.